GREENSBORO — Guilford County schools will soon start holding evacuation drills to prepare students and staff for chemical spills, train derailments and other emergencies.

Unlike fire drills, the new protocol will require people to go to a central location off the school campus, such as a neighboring park or church. In some cases, principals would direct parents to pick up their children from the evacuation site instead of the school, said Greggory Slate, an administrator in the district’s safety office.

“These are things we’re starting to explore and make sure schools understand the challenges that come with this,” he said.

A new school security task force learned of the plans Monday.

The Board of Education committee has been meeting for the past few weeks to discuss how to improve security measures in the district.

The safety office surveyed school administrators in December and found that many of them did not have adequate evacuation sites for their students and employees. Principals are now working to find as many as three outdoor and indoor sites and update agreements with the property owners, Slate said.

Several schools are currently planning evacuation drills, with more to come later in the school year, Slate said.

The district survey also found that 31 schools lacked weather radios to warn staff of approaching storms. Eighty-five percent of school principals were unaware of nearby hazards, such as rock quarries or explosives plants.

“This survey was incredibly invaluable,” Slate said.

The task force also reviewed $2.7 million in annual contracts for school resource officers. The contracts showed that the district spends varying amounts to staff its schools with officers from the Greensboro police, High Point police, and county sheriff’s department.

Salaries range from about $55,000 on average for Greensboro officers to about $70,000 on average for county officers. County officers work for 12 months while the others work for 11 months. The Greensboro Police Department charges for fuel, radios and uniforms. The other agencies do not.

Committee members expressed concerns about the contract terms but did not ask to renegotiate them.

“I think there’s been some movement to make things more consistent, but we’re not there yet,” said Nora Carr, chief of staff.

The committee will meet again March 11 to discuss mental health services for students and staff.

Later, members will recommend security upgrades as part of the 2013-14 budget.